Step 5: Choose 2 toppings for the top (granola and sprinkle of dark chocolate chips)

If you are lucky, the store will have a cherry to top it off.

Going to the yogurt store is fun. And delicious. And a treat.

And if it is Red Mango (the only yogurt store I really frequent), the all-natural ingredients make the yogurt healthy enough to be considered lunch.

But let’s face it, the cost can add up. I am convinced those yogurt weighing scales are rigged to charge us more and more each week.

Besides being an expensive habit, it is not always possible to pop into Red Mango on a daily basis.

This used to bother me. Yes, it truly bothered me.

Until I solved my own problem.

One can easily recreate the parfait experience at home. All you need is some fruit, granola (or other favorite crunchy cereal), and options such as dark chocolate chips, nuts, peanut butter etc.

*Don’t forget that Nature’s Path Pumpkin Flax Granola is the granola used at the Red Mango toppings bar.

No need to thank me for this valuable piece of information.

As for your at-home yogurt choices, you can always buy a pint from the yogurt store (a little pricey), or, Trader Joe’s makes a few natural frozen yogurts.

Truth: The majority of my at-home yogurt parfaits are made with plain greek yogurt. It is delicious without being frozen as well as extremely filling due to the high protein content. If you don’t like greek yogurt, use regular yogurt.

I always tried to make my packed lunches exciting, interesting, and colorful just to keep from getting bored.

Also, a great lunch gives you something to look forward to during the workday.

THREE TIPS TO PERKING UP YOUR WORKDAY LUNCH

1. Pack yourself something you look forward to.

Lunch doesn’t ALWAYS have to be a sandwich. Or even a salad.

I really recommend you switch things up a bit and make a portable yogurt parfait. Using greek yogurt gives you a serious amount of protein as well as calcium. The fruit will provide you with antioxidants and nutrients, the granola is a healthy balance of carbs, fat, protein, fiber (and flax if you use the one above).

Simply place all toppings in one container and bring a container of yogurt of choice.

Assemble when ready to eat.

If you are too embarrassed at work to start layering your lunch, just dump the yogurt on into the toppings container and mix.

Feeling guilty for not getting a serving of vegetables?

No problem. You can (and should) pack a few snacks with your lunch to be eaten in the morning and afternoon.

Pack up pre-cut veggies to be munched on plain or with dips such as salsa, hummus, or even peanut butter.

Peanut butter is not just for “ants on a log” people. Don’t knock carrots dipped in peanut butter until you try it.

2. A pretty napkin

Go ahead, laugh.

I always liked to pack my workday lunch with a pretty napkin. It may sound silly, but a napkin with bright colors featuring cupcakes brings a smile to my face.

It may seem ridiculous and minuscule but when you eat at your desk every day and are unable to leave your office, sometimes you need something to make you smile.

Why should fun lunches be reserved for kids?

3. The emergency snack – The only thing worse than a hungry day is a hungry day when trapped in the office. You have eaten your way through your food supply, are still ravenous and are stranded for another few hours.

Enter the emergency snack.

I never leave home without some form of a portable, nonperishable snack in my bag. One must always be prepared for a hungry moment.

Good choices are KIND Bars, Larabars, Quest Bars, a trail mix of different nuts/raisins.

The goal of your emergency snack is to serve two purposes:

Be there for EMERGENCIES ONLY; I always hope to NOT need to eat it.

Be filling, satisfying and nutritious, containing a minimal list of ingredients

Do not take the emergency snack lightly. Anything referred to as emergency is serious. Your hope is to not need to eat it, but it is there for you should you need rescuing.

Speaking of lunch, it is time for me to prepare the boy’s lunch box for school. He was home sick yesterday (how is it that he always effectively times illness for Monday?) but is better today.

I have a snack drawer at work with granola bars, seaweed, and nuts. However, my coworkers know about my stash and frequently dive in. I don’t mind sharing, but I am constantly needing to bring in more emergency snacks. I usually bring some sort of fish/shrimp/chicken to work for lunch with a veggie side. I love making assemble-at-work caprese salads. Your parfait idea is a good one and the fancy napkin! I definitely need to brighten up my lunches with pretty napkins,

dang, so i’ll second u adding bonafide parfait maker to expert ice cream concocter too! 😉
tho, i’m a weirdo and not a PB fan…soooo for mine let’s just double up on the chocolate chips…hehe.
mmmk….can i eat that napkin? 😉 jk

Hi! I’m Meredith!

Welcome to my blog! I'm an avid runner/self-proclaimed Pure Barre addict living in New York with a love for good food and fashion. Please join me as I run through divorced motherhood sharing my foodie moments, fashion favorites, race recaps and everything in between!

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*Although I have completed the Professional Certificate Program in Sports Nutrition and Performance through the School of Professional Development at Stonybrook University, I am not a registered Dietitian or Nutritionist. The health advice, opinion and information I provide in this blog is based upon my knowledge, beliefs, experiences and what works for my family and me.

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